1. Field of the invention
The present invention relates to an air pump, and more particularly to an air pump with a hidden extension tube received therein for facilitating the operation and transportation of the air pump.
2. Background
A conventional air pump is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,681,154. The patent shows that an air pump with dual air intakes is able to draw in and discharge air by means of each stroke of the piston slidably received within the air pump, which is really an improvement when compared with a conventional model. However, because of the limitation of the structure, a user will have to adjust himself or the air pump in order to correspond to different angles of the inlet provided on a variety of products when the air pump is applied to inflate an inflatable product. To avoid the necessity of adapting to different angles of the air pump, an extension tube made of elastic material is provided with the air pump, such that the user is able to readily inflate an object without adjusting or adapting to different angles of the inlets of the products. Still, the air pump with an extension tube causes a transportation problem. Because the extension tube is added to the air pump and exposed to the air, the user will have trouble carrying the air pump with the extension tube easily. Although the extension tube is detachably connected to the air pump and the user is able to detach the extension tube from the air pump so as to facilitate Transportation thereof, the user will still have to use positioning elements, such as rubber band, to securely hold the extension tube to the air pump, which often troubles the users.
The present invention provides an improved air pump with a hidden extension tube to obviate and/or mitigate the aforementioned problems. The air pump of the invention has a channel defined for slidably receiving the extension tube therein, such that the extension tube is able to be received within the channel when not in use, and the extension tube is able to be drawn out of the channel when in use.